espinay2

I don't know, though I have heard of a possible link between polyvalent vaccines and IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) that may be worth investigating Given that the vaccine can afect the immune system it is always possible. My suggestion would be to contact Dr Jean Dodds, one of the foremost authorities on vaccinosis and vaccine reactions. You can contact her here: http://www.hemopet.org/contact.html

The old GSD slept on without a worry. The Pyreneans alerted and barked briefly till they realised it was just the computer (and mum was playing more predator noises again LOL!) They then went outside to patrol and bark after hearing one of the hawks sound off as it flew over. Real life predators are much more interesting ;).

My favourite website for coat colour genetics: http://abnormality.purpleflowers.net/genetics/

I like 'late starters' too :) With every season the uterus 'breaks down' whether the bitch is bred or not. Less seasons less often means a healthier uterus. Note Wolves often don't have their first season until around 2 years of age.

Show your Style: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Second-Chance-Suits/109604792429194?ref=ts#!/pages/Show-your-style/111039412264925

AI has its place (Frozen semen, dog a long way away, timing etc) but we have to be VERY careful we are not using it as a substitute because the dogs can't physically mate naturally. We should IMO be selecting for dogs that mate easily and naturally. Problems with not being able to reproduce easily can be passed down the line - selection for dogs and bitches that are good natural producers is just as important as any other feature a breeder selects for. Science is all well and good, but it can not and should not replace nature.

You do know that most vets would not have the knowledge or equipment to do an transcervical insemination? The best that most could do is a vaginal AI. Well, the article I cited quotes the probably of a fresh intrauterine AI above 80% while vaginal AI just 50-50. So are you talking about most Vets or reproduction specialists? If I was going to pay the money, then I would want it done as I requested. Don't get me started on most Vets, here in the breeders forum. Px Px your the one saying get a vet to come to the property to do something they most likely do not have the skill or equipment to do the job safely. No good quoting figures for something that's not very feasible to do unless the OP is willing to travel with the two dogs to a repo vet who does do the transcervical insemination. And not all repo vets do TCI's The video posted in an earlier thread shows why: http://www.dolforums.com.au/topic/232076-video-of-a-tci/ Not the sort of equipment the average vet would be carting around with them. For those who want to know more about different AI methods I also recomment Dr Robert Hutchison's video "Maximising Conception in the Bitch" SLF good luck with you mating and let us know how it goes and what you do!!

Agree. Natural if you can. AI only if you have to. Have fun! :D

My prescription glasses have transitions lenses. In the sun it looks like I am wearing sunglasses.

Why not do two natural matings?

Sniffalan - 'sniffalot' Momhadra - 'my dog' Tadul - 'have a go' Mosheal - 'my turn' Mojoma - combination of Mo ('my') and the first letters of your kids names

We have pups come to puppy classes at the vets (where I teach older classes) - sometimes from 7 or so weeks of age. Vets all over Australia are holding these types of classes every week without incident. Each to their own but I do put pups on the floor at the vet. I do go in to the vet and check how things are and what is there etc before taking any inside though.

Sometimes it can be a matter of accepting the good with the bad. What are you prepared to compromise on and to 'live with' to get the good (the traits you find most important). And sometimes it is a matter of....as the song goes........ 'what I did for love' :laugh:

But Maremma are under-represented in the show ring so there is less to compare. The show quality is improving. At least I hope it is so lets not go there. But my two dogs are titled and justifiably so. I don't want to sound arrogant but which one of their pups was not show or breeding quality? What I will say is that dogs were chosen for show and breed homes because they were superior to the others. But that means they were an improvement on their parents not that the others were inferior to their parents. All worthy of the main register. Lets face it we're not talking hundreds even dozens of dogs here. I don't want to sound rude, but in the interest of our objectives - To Improve the Breed - If you are producing dogs that obviously have to go on the Limited Register then -- hello !!!! Some difference I would have thought. Regards Px Ummm. I would suggest a few books for you to read. One is 'Structure in Action' by Pat Hastings (and also her 'Puppy Puzzle' video). Interesting that Pat herself has stated in her seminars that in all the litters she has assessed (hundreds and hundreds of them) she has only in her life seen two litters which were even across the board and all pups being of 'show potential'. This is a rare rare thing!! The other I suggest is 'Reaching for the Stars' by by Mary Roslin Williams who discusses a system of constant assessment as well as identification of faults and failings in dogs. Frankly, I don't know ANY experienced or top breeder past or present who would claim to have all pups in a litter to be show and breeding potential. Perhaps you haven't got your eye in to 'see' the faults and failings yet? It does take practice to see the differences and subtleties that can make a big difference in a breed. Frankly, I have in the past titled dogs that I would never breed with (and didn't) so the fact that a dog of a breed with only a small number competing out there gains its title is not always a good yardstick of quality. A better yardstick show-wise perhaps (if you want to use shows as a yardstick) is how they do under breed specialist judges, at breed specialties, shows where a larger number of the breed is entered and maybe also in the Group and General Specials competition at all breeds shows (though of course we can debate that till the cows come home). This is the competition I would be seeking out.

I feel your pain as I have a bitch who for a long time would not pee when away from home. She once went three days when we were away at a show and I cut the trip short as I was concerned. With her I put it down to the fact that I had not really taught her to pee while on lead when at home and she liked her 'privacy' :laugh: It was frustrating though I can tell you! What changed things for her though was when she was away from home being boarded at a vets for several weeks (for AI) where she was walked on lead every day to toilet. She had no choice but to go so she learnt to do it. Life is so much easier with her now and I have learnt to always teach pups to go to the toilet when on lead at home so they don't become 'shy'. The boys I admit I tend to find easier as they like to mark so putting them near a tree other dogs have gone on often helps (though I have one that will even poo up a tree :laugh: ).

It was pre computer for me when I chose my breed, so not so much of the information available at the fingertips as there is today. I was looking into a range of breeds and was buying the TFH general breed books for the breeds I was interested in. I was looking at gundog breeds mostly originally and was in fact seriously considering a springer spaniel. Then I bought a copy of Dogs USA Puppies Annual (I still have that copy!) It had pictures and information on most of the breeds. It also had articles and one was about a 'Great Pyrenees' called Alaska Snow. I saw the pictures, read the article, and was entranced. It was a breed I had never heard of or considered. It sounded to be just what I wanted and no matter what other breeds I considered (I tried to be objective) I could NOT take my eyes off that dog! :laugh: So I bought the TFH book and called the canine control to find out about breeders etc (where I learnt they were called Pyrenean Mountain Dogs here) and they put me onto the PMD club in Victoria. I talked to them, they put me onto a breeder who talked some more (and where I found out that not all Pyrs are pure white), I decided that yes, I could deal with the 'issues' the breed presented (they made sure I knew what they were though at the time I don't think I really understood fully what I was in for ;) ) and I decided to buy a puppy (which was luckily available - it was a case of right place at right time). The first time I met a Pyr was when I went to the airport to pick up 9 week old Halley. It was 100% the right decision for me

It is a bit like buying a property in an estate that has covenants. The breed is the estate and the covenants are the rules the breeder needs to abide by to live there. Of course if you don't like the covenants you can always buy property elsewhere, but if that is where you want to live, you go in knowing the conditions that apply ;) . In a breed with a small genetic pool in particular it can be important for breeders to be careful about what goes where and who breeds with what. Sure I do think sometimes things can be more open (and politics can unfortunately get in the way for some) but on the whole it can be important protection for a breed. I will give an example of two quite similar breeds - the Pyrenean Mountain Dog and the Maremma. Pyr breeders have over the years managed to keep a reasonably tight control on who breeds what, with a number of small exceptions. You rarely see a Pyr in rescue (though they do occur from time to time) and you don't often see a cross bred Pyr (and when you do they can usually be traced back to those small exceptions I mentioned. Breed numbers have remained static but the genepool has remained active with plenty of dogs being imported etc. Breeders don't actually necessarily want larger numbers, particularly as it can be a breed that is hard to place in the right homes. On the other hand the Maremma has on the whole been less controlled. There are a lot of backyard bred Maremma and quite a lot have over the years turned up in rescue. It has created a lot of work for a lot of people mopping up messes - rescue, responsible breeders, trainers, behaviourists, vets etc. The number of responsible registered breeders of Maremma who contribute to the future of the breed (and do a great job) is still not huge, but the number of Maremma bred in total by all breeders is a lot more. 'Growth' is not always progress. The thing is though - if you go in willing to work with a breeder and recognise that maybe they have a lot to offer then these types of 'rules' can be liberating rather than restricting. They offer an opportunity to learn and to grow. The breeder is generally not only offering the product of their hard work, but a chance to be in on the ground level to continue with the creation and a chance to gain some of the knowledge they themselves have gained over the years - probably starting off in a similar way 'apprenticed' to another more experienced breeder. IMO these days people are very much in the 'mine mine mine' frame of mind and forget all about sharing. Being a breeder is about sharing what people in the past have done and building on that. Expecting to just take and give nothing back (except cold hard cash) IMO devalues all that work. And expecting without any prior experience to 'know best' also too can be seen as somewhat egotistical and not really in the interests of the breed. JMHO and FWIW

Achamhain = only one :D Iltasker = multi tasker Suasmise = suas mise (I will leave you to translate that one yourself ;) )

If it were IMPARTIALLY first come first served - a bit like booking theatre seats for caravan park sites - I would be in on it for reserved spaces (or preferably reserved marquees already erected such as at Sunbury). I would gladly pay a reasonable fee at some shows to have a reserved marquee there ready for me. Could be quite a business in there for someone if they could get the clubs on board (and an extra money raising idea for some clubs). Would have to make sure there was plenty of room and reasonable access to the ring for those who choose not to take up the service though.

Need a strong leader. They can be quite wary and standoffish with strangers. Fairly independent nature and strong minded. Need LOTS of socialisation. Can be quite territorial so expect your house and yard to be WELL guarded. Can be quite vocal when they do this and you may need to watch things like fence rushing etc. They are GREAT dogs and a breed I very much respect and admire, but compared to a cocker may be quite a shock to own - VERY different and not always 'easy'.

10 months old...summer....first major coat blow. Perfectly normal :D .

I got sick of messy towels too from the dogs dribbling and spilling water everywhere, but instead of finding a better mat, we bought one of these bowls for inside: Road Refresher Almost no mess now as a result! If you are looking for a mat though, I saw these the other day that might work: Frosty Mats

This is a MASSIVE assumption. The person who surrendered the dog may have handed over the papers. This breeder could have died, had a serious health issue, moved away, changed contact details and not been contacted and advised that the dog was in a pound etc etc. Fair enough, but that was not the only dog who was there with their papers ect, they can't ALL have died, had health issues ect, and even if this was the case, if it was one of the pups i bred i would still leave details to forward to another responsible person so none of my pups ended up with this fate. I just personally think many breeders want to offlay all the blame on so called byb when they can just as easily contribute to the overpopulation of dogs further down the line (as i also stated in a previous post). The mentality in this post quite honestly is shocking. There is a way of getting a message across... After this response the OP may be more likely to go to a byb for dogs and advice given the response by registered breeders here While there are many good rescue organisations/pounds etc that will work with breeders and breed rescue etc, unfortunately some rescues ect also refuse to let the breeder have the dog back, even if they beg and the only person a council pound will often contact is the council licenced (legal) owner (and if the owner is the one doing the surrendering, they are under no legal obligation to contact anyone and often wont). Yes, not all registered breeders are created equal, but you are jumping to some pretty big conclusions it seems without having all the facts.

Basic info on my webpage as a 'starting point' for education. There are some links there to info that may be handy as handouts or references etc for puppy buyers. Showing them what you do as well as just talking about it also helps as people take in more of what they see. If you want to talk to even more 'rawbreeders' about what they do there is a link to a list I run on my webpage info.

Perhaps the person being 'trained' had a consistency problem and the trainer was trying to make it clear to them that they need different commands for the different things (particularly if they were using 'down' freely for all sorts of things as well as when getting the dog to actually lie down). Some things can get lost in translation from person to person - particularly if the telling is third and fourth hand. I do tell my classes they can use what they want, but do suggest using the word 'drop' particularly if they are using 'down' when the dog is jumping, or to get off the couch or bed etc etc.